1. Field
Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to an air conditioner and a communication method for the same, wherein power is supplied and communication is performed using two lines.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional air conditioner is an apparatus that cools, heats, or purifies air using transfer of heat generated through a refrigerant evaporation and compression cycle and then discharges the air for air conditioning in a specific indoor space.
The air conditioner includes an indoor unit installed in an indoor space, an outdoor unit that is installed outside the space and is connected to the indoor unit, and a controller that is electrically connected to the indoor unit to control operation of the indoor unit. The air conditioner also includes refrigerant tubes that are installed between the outdoor unit and the indoor unit to circulate refrigerant between the outdoor unit and the indoor unit according to a refrigerant cycle.
The controller is connected to the indoor unit by wire or wirelessly to control operation of the indoor unit. A multi-type air conditioner that is installed to provide air conditioning to a plurality of indoor spaces often uses a wired controller to control operation of indoor units since the wireless controller may be easily lost.
When such a wired controller is used, the indoor unit and the outdoor unit may be connected through two power lines and two communication lines and the indoor unit and the wired controller may be connected through two power lines and two communication lines.
That is, the indoor unit, the outdoor unit, and the wired controller are connected through the four lines and supply power through the two power lines and perform communication with each other through the two communication lines.
When such an air conditioner using a wired controller is installed, a service technician connects two power lines and two communication lines between an outdoor unit and an indoor unit and then connects refrigerant tubes between the outdoor unit and the indoor unit and also connects two power lines and two communication lines between the indoor unit and the wired controller.
Here, since the service technician should individually connect four lines between the indoor unit and the outdoor unit and four lines between the indoor unit and the wired controller, a large number of lines are required to install the air conditioner, increasing line costs and the likelihood of incorrect line connection of power lines and communication lines, thus increasing the likelihood of malfunction in communication circuits and incurring repair costs when a communication circuit malfunctions.
Especially, in the case where a multi-type air conditioner is installed, a great number of lines are used and great crosstalk occurs between lines, making communication unstable. In addition, as the number of indoor and outdoor units of the multi-type air conditioner increases, installation and management difficulties increase since the number of communication and power lines also increases.